Abstract: A tea plantation can serve as one of the primary pathways to transform the cultivated land into non-grain agricultural production. The tea plantations have faced considerable challenges under the “occupation-compensation balance” policy of arable land in China. A major driver of economic growth can be found in the large-scale tea-producing regions, particularly amidst the transition towards high-quality development. Consequently, this study aims to refine the governance models of the tea plantation, thereby optimizing land-use patterns. Simultaneously, the unsuitable plantations were removed to protect the arable land, particularly for the continued productivity of the advantageous tea-producing areas. Firstly, the suitability evaluation system was constructed using 18 indicators across six dimensions: soil quality, topography, climate, location, economic feasibility, and landscape configuration. Secondly, both tea planting and land reclamation were assessed to determine the optimal land use, in order to fully meet the dual needs of the tea plantation restoration and quality enhancement. Subsequently, a four-quadrant model was then employed to classify into four categories of the management zones. Finally, the targeted governance strategies were proposed for each zone. A renowned tea-producing area, the case study site was selected as Anxi County, Quanzhou City, Fujian Province, China. The results showed that: 1) In terms of the suitability for the tea cultivation, tea gardens with the high suitability were primarily distributed in Longjuan Township, Huqiu Town, and Xiping Town in the southwestern part of Anxi County at the moderate elevations, accounting for 28.78% of the total tea garden area; The tea gardens with the low suitability were primarily distributed in Xianghua Township and Changqing Town in the western part, accounting for 10.76% of the total area. In terms of suitability for the tea garden rehabilitation, tea gardens suitable for rehabilitation were primarily distributed in the low-altitude areas of Penglai Town and Jingu Town in the eastern part of the county, accounting for only 3.59% of the total; Tea gardens unsuitable for rehabilitation were widely distributed, accounting for 68.27% of the total, particularly with the severe soil acidification or excessively steep slopes. 2) Tea garden rehabilitation was divided into four categories: conversion (2613.48 hm²), coordination (7506.18 hm²), improvement (40620.64 hm²), and restoration zones (25962.77 hm²). Among them, the coordination zone was considered suitable for both tea cultivation and land reclamation. The restoration zone was unsuitable for both of them. The improvement zone was suitable for the high-quality tea gardens but not for land reclamation. The conversion zone shared excellent conditions for land reclamation, but was unsuitable for tea cultivation. 3) Key implementation strategies included for the tea garden governance on the policy-driven land transformation in the conversion zone. Tea-grain intercropping models were promoted in the coordination zone. Green production technologies were applied to the improvement zone. The soil restoration and spatial optimization were implemented in the restoration zone. A replicable governance model was simultaneously achieved in the agricultural land optimization, ecological sustainability, and policy compliance. The finding can provide the technical guidelines to balance between tea fields and farmland. The land use optimization can be globally implemented in the ecologically sensitive regions, where cash crops are cultivated for rural revitalization.